California's domestic partner law, which gave thousands of gay and lesbian couples most of the rights of spouses under state law, survived a legal challenge Wednesday when the state Supreme Court rejected an appeal by conservative religious groups.

Opponents of same-sex marriage argued that the domestic partner law, which took effect this year, was the equivalent of marriage and thus violated a 2000 ballot measure that outlawed same-sex marriage in California.

But a Sacramento judge and a state appeals court ruled that the law was not equal to marriage. The courts noted that partners are ineligible for some state marital benefits and a wide range of federal benefits, and may be unable to get other states to recognize their relationships.

The state's high court denied review of the case today without comment. Justice Janice Rogers Brown, who is leaving the court Thursday to become a federal appeals court judge in Washington, D.C., was absent from the vote, the court said.

The court action ends the legal case, but may not resolve the issue. Three proposed ballot initiatives that would amend the state Constitution to prohibit both same-sex marriage and marital benefits for domestic partners have been submitted to state officials for review, said Geoff Kors, executive director of the gay-rights group Equality Now. The initiatives could be cleared for signature-gathering by August and qualify for the state ballot next year.